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My Ex-Teen Icon MAG
The other day I was walking down the aisle of my neighborhood Super Walmart, desperately scanning the shelves for Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds. To my dismay and shock, there were none. I turned to leave when suddenly I came face to face with my mortal enemy: Hannah Montana. There she was, staring into space as though a crisp hundred dollar bill was dangling from a fishing pole before her.
“Hannah Montana cereal,” I muttered, cursing Disney. But I suppose I should have known better. Did I honestly expect Disney not to cash in on every opportunity to plaster Miley Cyrus's face onto products? It was as if Disney had been shipping off Hannah Montana stickers to every manufacturer with the note, “Use these at your discretion; they'll make anything sell.” Because why wouldn't I want to buy a product if a chick in a wig is telling me to?
I was a sixth grader when the Hannah Montana phenomenon landed on our planet. My friends and I became obsessed with the show, to the point that we made our own music videos and memorized the title of every episode. When I was in seventh grade, this success grabbed the attention of those out of range of Disney Channel's hypnotron, and Miley Cyrus slowly but surely approached the teen audience, eager and cautious.
It was fine, it was all fine. No one expected her to stay young forever, she had a career to worry about and pressure to be cool among her own peers. But as the reports of tasteless photos appeared, I stopped staring with a blind eye. Who was this girl I looked up to? I was the same age this “role model” was when she started running off the track, and I had never done anything remotely like that.
So now, whenever I walk into a store, I feel betrayed by my ex-teen icon. Her very image screams “Look at me! I may act trashy and dim, but as long as I'm not caught pulling a Winona Ryder, Disney will continue paying me a gazillion bucks!” I wish I could say to her, “Be a role model or stop putting on that wig to reap all the benefits.”
I'm not as cynical as I seem though. I hope Miley takes the right path. I hope she doesn't become the next Britney. Or Lindsay. Or Jamie Lynn. But everyone grows up, and odds are that if they come from Disney, they end up in Vegas. And I don't appreciate Miley trying to persuade me to buy her bicycle.
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This article has 208 comments.
But your article is really good. *thumbs up*
ps- thanks for the comp. on my screen name
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that waa supposed do be a bunny but i think it kinda looks like a fail-whale
In my article I never specifically talked about the Annie Leibowitz photo shoot but if she didn't want to do it I'm sure she wouldn't have...
Yes, she is a girl that went for her dream and is one of the very lucky few to have achieved it. But as the girl playing 'Hannah Montana' on a child-targeted Disney Channel show, Miley is under the position of role model and should not misuse her fame in the eyes of her viewers, which I believe she has.
And I'm not critiquing someone who goes out for/achieves her dream.
My article was a personal reflection on how the girl I looked up to turned out not to be who I thought she was, and how stores are constantly capitalizing on her image.
I think you would understand where I come from better if you finished the article and then decide to comment.
And by the way, I love your screen name ;)
(hey- in your comment on you article, didn;t you say you father encouraged you to try journalism?)
and then yes- she grew up and became a big star. how do you even know she wanted to do that exposing photo shoot? and what's wrong with a tattoo?
i doubt if you would want as much critiquing as you are handing to Miley Cyrus when and if you take a shot at your dream.
i'm sorry if i sound as rube as i think i do- you've never been Miley Cyrus- you don't know what she knows about herself, and i think that eliminates your right to judge her from what you simpley here from the media
The work I have pasted here is simply my own thoughts after having come across a cereal box endorsed by Hannah Montana.
Enjoy!